Not many people have had the pleasure of meeting a vestibular disorder, if you are one of those people consider yourself extremely lucky!
About ten years ago I woke up to a horrifying illness, it was Vestibular Neuritis,at that time I had no idea what is was..Okay,let's go back, I was recovering from a cold virus, nothing unusual, I thought I was getting better other than lingering fullness in my right ear. Little did I know what was to come next would change my life completely.
I woke up on a winter Saturday morning still recovering from the cold virus to a spinning sensation. Have you ever been on the ride, the tilt o world? It was just like that. Each time I turned my head I would spin out of control, I went straight into complete panic mode. After a couple hours the sensation began to diminish a bit, but what I was left with was sense of being off balance, blurred vision, dizziness, fatigue and extreme anxiety. What had been a minor cold virus turned into what is known as Vestibular Neuritis.
After visiting numerous types of doctors, including ENT'S, Primary doctors, Naturopath doctors, I was finally diagnosed .
Vestibular Neuritis is a disorder that results from an infection that inflames the inner ear, or the nerves that connect the inner ear to the brain. The inflammation disrupts the transmission of the sensory information from the ear to the brain, which results in vertigo, balance issues, dizziness , vision problems and much more.
Vestibular Neuritis begins from a viral infection of the inner ear. The hard part about a viral infection of the inner ear is doctors don't know a whole lot and they are very difficult to diagnose and treat. Many times these viral infections are a result of a systematic viral illness, one that is affecting the rest of the body, such as Mono, Measles, or Epstein Barr Virus.
There are a lot of viruses that have been associated with Vestibular Neuritis. These include the Herpes virus ( the one that causes cold sores or shingles), influenza, Epstein Barr Virus, Measles and many more.
Since the inner ear infection is caused by a virus, it can run its course or it can stop for a while only to return again. There is no way to know if it will raise its ugly head again.
There are two phases of Vestibular Neuritis: Acute phase and Chronic phase
Acute phase: This phase the symptoms begin very quickly, feeling the spinning sensation doing daily
tasks or like my case, the spinning sensation begins early in the morning while lying in bed. Some people stay in this phase and their symptoms go away quickly.
Chronic phase: For many this is the unbearable stage. This is when the dizziness and other symptoms are here to stay, this is why it's the chronic phase.
Having a debilitating invisible illness is one of the most difficult things because "we" look fine but "we" are not fine. Basic everyday activities such as, using your phone, looking at the computer, chores, making meals, taking care of your kiddos, working, being in the super market, crowds, driving and socializing become frightening and extremely fatiguing.
Like I mentioned before, most doctors and specialists have no idea how to diagnose yet treat Vestibular Neuritis. Just in my experience alone it took years of tests, allergy tests, food elimination and much more to finally get a diagnosis. My Naturopath did extensive testing and extensive blood work and found that I tested positive for the Epstein Barr virus and Vestibular Neuritis . I will talk more about Epstein Barr virus on my next blog. So stay tuned!
To try to heal many people with Vestibular Neuritis begin with vestibular therapy ( physical therapy), to retrain your brain to adjust to the imbalance. Other's like myself also find help using the "Medical Medium" regimen. I will go deeper into this as well in my next blog, but just a sneak peek..the Medical Medium is Anthony William, he offers health and medical advise. He is an expert in treating the Epstein Barr virus. His teachings literally changed my life!!
In my case it's been 10 years since this all began. I have researched and worked with so many people to come up with the right plan of attack to beat Vestibular Neuritis and Epstein Barr . I still stick to a strict regimen because you always have to be prepared for it to come back again.